[world-vedic] Prime Minister Vajpayee - A Profile

Link · 10-15-1999, 06:39 AM

From: indembwash@...

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
>
>
>Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been sworn-in as the Prime Minister
>of India. The President Shri K.R. Narayanan administered the oath of
>office and secrecy at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on October 13, 1999.
>Shri Vajpayee has assumed the office of the Prime Minister of
>India for the third time.
>
>Earlier, Shri Vajpayee was Prime Minister of India from
>May 16-31, 1996 and a second time from March 19, 1998
>till date. With his swearing-in today as Prime Minister,
>he becomes the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru
>to occupy the office of the Prime Minister of India through
>three successive mandates. Shri Vajpayee is also the first
>Prime Minister since Smt. Indira Gandhi to lead his party
>to victory in successive elections.
>
>Born on December 25, 1924 at Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh to
>Shri Krishna Bihari Vajpayee and Smt. Krishna Devi, Shri
>Vajpayee brings with him a long parliamentary experience
>spanning over four decades. He has been a Member of Parliament
>since 1957. He was elected to the 5th, 6th and 7th Lok Sabha
>and again to the 10th, 11th and 12th Lok Sabha and to Rajya
>Sabha in 1962 and 1986. He has again been elected to Parliament
>from Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh for the fourth time consecutively.
>He is the only parliamentarian elected from four different States
>at different times namely - UP, Gujarat, MP and Delhi.
>
>Elected leader of the National Democratic Alliance, which is a
>pre-election coming together of political parties from different
>regions of the country and which enjoys a comfortable backing
>and support of the elected Members of the 13th Lok Sabha, Shri
>Vajpayee was earlier elected leader of his own Bharatiya Janata
>Party (BJP) parliamentary party which has also again emerged as
>the single largest party in the 13th Lok Sabha as was the case
>in the 12th Lok Sabha.
>
>Educated at Victoria (now Laxmi Bai) College, Gwalior and DAV
>College, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, Shri Vajpayee holds an M.A
>(Political Science) degree and has many literary, artistic
>and scientific accomplishments to his credit. He edited Rashtradharma
>(a Hindi monthly), Panchjanya (a Hindi weekly) and the dailies
>Swadesh and Veer Arjun. His published works include "Meri Sansadiya
>Yatra" (in four volumes), "Meri Ikkyavan Kavitayen", "Sankalp Kaal",
>"Shakti-se-Shanti", "Four Decades in Parliament" (speeches in
>three volumes), 1957-95, "Lok Sabha mein Atalji" (a collection
>of speeches); Mrityu Ya Hatya", "Amar Balidan", "Kaidi Kaviraj
>Ki Kundalian" (a collection of poems written in jail during Emergency);
>"New Dimensions of India's Foreign Policy" (a collection of speeches
>delivered as External Affairs Minister during 1977-79); "Jan Sangh Aur
>Mussalman"; "Sansad Mein Teen Dashak" (Hindi) (speeches in Parliament -
>1957-1992 - three volumes; and "Amar Aag Hai" (a collection of poems)
>1994.
>
>Shri Vajpayee has participated in various social and cultural
>activities.
>He has been a Member of the National Integration Council since 1961.
>Some of his other associations include - (i) President, All India
>Station
>Masters and Assistant Station Masters Association (1965-70); (ii)
>Pandit
>Deendayal Upadhyay Smarak Samiti (1968-84); (iii) Deen Dayal Dham,
>Farah,Mathura, U.P; and (iv) Janmabhomi Smarak Samiti, 1969 onwards.
>
>Founder-member of the erstwhile Jana Sangh (1951), President, Bharatiya
>Jana Sangh (1968-1973), leader of the Jana Sangh parliamentary party
>(1955-1977) and a founder-member of the Janata Party (1977-1980),
>Shri Vajpayee was President, BJP (1980-1986) and the leader of BJP
>parliamentary party during 1980-1984, 1986 and 1993-1996. He was
>Leader of the Opposition throughout the term of the 11th Lok Sabha.
>Earlier, he was India's External Affairs Minister in the Morarji
>Desai Government from March 24, 1977 to July 28, 1979.
>
>Widely respected within the country and abroad as a statesman of
>the genre of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, Shri Vajpayee's 1998-99 stint
>as Prime Minister has been characterised as 'one year of courage
>of conviction'. It was during this period that India entered a
>select group of nations following a series of successful nuclear
>tests at Pokharan in May 1998. The bus journey to Pakistan in
>February 1999 was widely acclaimed for starting a new era of
>negotiations to resolve the outstanding problems of the sub-continent.
>India's honesty made an impact on the world community. Later,
>when this gesture of friendship turned out to be a betrayal of
>faith in Kargil, Shri Vajpayee was also hailed for his successful
>handling of the situation in repulsing back the intruders from the
>Indian soil. It was during Shri Vajpayee's 1998-99 tenure that despite
>a global recession, India achieved 5.8 per cent GDP growth, which was
>higher than the previous year. Higher agricultural production and
>increase in foreign exchange reserves during this period were
>indicative
>of a forward-looking economy responding to the needs of the people.
>"We must grow faster. We simply have no other alternative" has been
>Shri Vajpayee's slogan focussing particularly on economic empowerment
>of the rural poor. The bold decisions taken by his Government for
>strengthening rural economy, building a strong infrastructure and
>revitalising the human development programmes, fully demonstrated
>his Government's commitment to a strong and self-reliant nation to
>meet the challenges of the next millennium to make India an economic
>power in the 21st century. Speaking from the ramparts of the Red
>Fort on the occasion of 52nd Independence Day, he had said, "I have
>a vision of India : an India free of hunger and fear, an India
>free of illiteracy and want."
>
>Shri Vajpayee has served on a number of important Committees of
>Parliament. He was Chairman, Committee on Government Assurances
>(1966-67); Chairman, Public Accounts Committee (1967-70); Member,
>General Purposes Committee (1986); Member, House Committee and
>Member, Business Advisory Committee, Rajya Sabha (1988-90);
>Chairman, Committee on Petitions, Rajya Sabha (1990-91);
>Chairman, Public Accounts Committee, Lok Sabha (1991-93);
>Chairman, Standing Committee on External Affairs (1993-96).
>
>Shri Vajpayee participated in the freedom struggle and went to
>jail in 1942. He was detained during Emergency in 1975-77.
>
>Widely travelled, Shri Vajpayee has been taking a keen interest
>in international affairs, upliftment of Scheduled Castes and
>Scheduled Tribes, women and child welfare. Some of his travels
>abroad include visits such as - Member, Parliamentary Goodwill
>Mission to East Africa, 1965; Parliamentary Delegation to
>Australia, 1967; European Parliament, 1983; Canada, 1987; Indian
>delegation to Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meetings
>held in Canada, 1966 and 1994, Zambia, 1980, Isle of Man
>1984, Indian delegation to Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference,
>Japan, 1974; Sri Lanka, 1975; Switzerland, 1984; Indian Delegation
>to the UN General Assembly, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994;
>Leader, Indian Delegation to the Human Rights Commission Conference,
>Geneva, 1993.
>
>Shri Vajpayee was conferred Padma Vibhushan in 1992 in recognition
>of his services to the nation. He was also conferred the Lokmanya
>Tilak Puruskar and the Bharat Ratna Pt. Govind Ballabh Pant Award
>for the Best Parliamentarian, both in 1994. Earlier, the Kanpur
>University honoured him with an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy
>in 1993.
>
>Well known and respected for his love for poetry and as an eloquent
>speaker, Shri Vajpayee is known to be a voracious reader. He is
>fond of Indian music and dance.
>
>
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Embassy of India
>Press & Information
>Washington, DC
>http:\\www.indianembassy.org
>
>
>

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